Air-cushion device for vehicles.



Pat( med Mar. 27, 1917.

WITNESSES ATTORNEYS lUNITED ysTi-iTEsA PATENT OFFICE.

RALPH VICTOR HAYES, or enooILYN, Nn'vYonx.

AIR-CUSHION DEVICE FOR VEHICLES.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Application led August 17, 1311. Serial No. 644, H0.

i To 11M whom z'tmay conce-m:

Be .it 1anown that l, RALPH VICTOR HAYES,

' a citizen of' the United States, residing in the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn,v

county of Kings, and .State of `New York, have Invented a certain new and useful Alr I Cushion Device for Vehicles, of which the following is a specification.

As is wellyknown, the body of vehicles are subject to jars, vibrations and shocks due to the Wheels passing over irregularities in the surface of the road bed or way, andto obstructions vin the road. For minimizingthese shocks and jars, it is customary to employ inflated tires on the vehicle Wheels, and to cushion the vehicle body by the employment of springs, shock absorbers, and other accessories designed to promote the ease of riding and the comfort oi' the passengers. i

The present invention pertains to an improved cushion device for yieldingly or elas` tically sujiiporting the vehicle bodyand'the loadimposed thereon by a cushion composed of air or other gaseous medium confined under pressure within suitable cylinders in such mannerthat the body will be relieved Wholly, or to a"great extent, from the road vshocks and jars, whereby am enabled toV entirely dispense with metallic springs as ameans for supporting the weight of the loaded body and with shock` absorbers and other devices for minimizing the e'ect of road shocks upon said body.

In devicesof thiseharacter, a plurality of upright cylinders, preferably four in nalmber, are positioned at the several corners of the body, said cylinders being fastened firmly to' said body, and yWithin said cylinders are operatively positioned a like number of pistons, the yrods of said pistons being connected in -a suitable "way to the running gear or axles of said vehicle running gear. 4The pistons are movable Within 'the cylinders under the action of the vehicle wheels in passing over irregularities and obstructions in the road bed, but the resulting shock, jar or vibration is not niechanically transmitted to the vehicle body, for the 'reason thatl an elastic cushion, 1ny the form ofA air Ior other gaseous'medium t under pressure, is interposed between the cylinders and thvy pistons, the said elastic medium being artificially established by forcing air or gzs into, the cylinders and said' air orgas being confined within the cylinders in such manner as to permit a limited relative nl ovement between the pistons and the cyliiders, whereby the elastic medium operates to absorb, wholly or par-A tially, the road shocks or jars so as to preclude them from affecting the vehicle body or the occupants thereof;

It is to be not ed that the cylinders'ar'e charged with air or'gas until a predetermined pressure is established therein suicient to sustain tl le Weight of the body and its load, but the airor gas pressureismateriallyv increased bythe movement of the 'pistons (due to ro 1d shocks or jars)` relative to the cylinders.V

In order to mi'iimize the leakage of the airor gas retain ed under pressure inv the chamber between the' piston and the cylinder, it isdesirable to employ a seal composed of a substance of a more or less liquid nature. It is appar ent that a free liquid seal imposed upon the piston will splash Within the cylinder when the vehicle is subjected to rough shocks or jars, and, furthermore,

that such free liquid when in contact with 'the air or gas willemulsi'fy therewith, par- Patentea Mar. 2v, 1917. j

ety

ticularly should it happen that oil be uti- .lized asthe `sealingr mediu1n;

For overcoming the tendency ofthe sealing medium to splash Within the cylinder,

and to preclude its emulsification Withthe air or gas, my iiivention embodies a specially constructed piston for containing Va desired quantity t f the liquid which consti# Vaus tutes thel seal, said liquid being` substantially ,y

isolated from cor tact withthe. air. or gas under pressure within the chamber ofthe' cylinder. It will be understood that the'- cylindervis provided with means for attachment to one part )f the vehicle, such as thebody thereof, Whe reas the piston has means for attachment tc another part of said vehicle, such as the running gear. Furthermore, the seal'containi'ng piston is constructed with seal outlets so positioned that the sealing mater: al is supplied to the Acontacting surfaces oi. the cylinderand the piston.v Now, when theair or gas'pressure tween the piston and the cylinder owing to a rough condition 'of the road, then the resulting increased pressure displaces a relatively small quantity of the liquid seal into the space between the opposing surfaces of the cylinder and the piston, thus effectively sealing the cushion device' against the leakage of air or gas pressure.

Other features of the `invention and the advantages thereof will appear in the course of the following detailed description.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated 'different practical 'embodiments of the invention, but the constructions shown ,therein are to be understood as illustrative, only, and not as defining the limits of the invention. y l

Figure. 1V is a side elevation partly in section of a motor driven vehicle provided with load carrying devices for the. body constructed in accordance with this invention, the plane of the section being'indicated by the dotted linel-l of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow.

, Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the vehicle shown in Fig. 1, the'wheels being omitted.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of another embodiment of a coperating cylinder and piston illustrating a preferred construction of the piston adapted for containing a liquid seal which is adapted, by the pressure of the elastic shock absorbing medium, to be forced vbetween the contacting surfaces of the cylin- 'dei' and the piston.

- Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on the irregular line 6-6 of Fig. 3.

I A designates a portion of a body forming one element of an automobile or other motor driven vehicle. B, C are. the front and rear raxles, respectively, of a running gear of the vehicle, and D are the road wheels on said axles. illustrate or describe in detail a particular form of vehicle body, ailes or wheels of the vehicle, for the reason that these parts may be of the usualor any preferred construction.

. For operatively connecting the vehicle 'body with the running gear, I employ a plurality of load supporting devices in lieu of the springs and shock absorbin devices ordinarily resorted to in automobi es. The load-carrying devices are, preferably, four in number, one of said devices being posi- ,tioned at ieach corner o'f4 thevehicle body.

`Each load carrying device'embodies a. cylinder 5,'a piston 6 and a piston rod 7,a practical construction of said piston being shown more particularly in Figs. 3 and 4. v The y cylinder is open at its lower end, the upper vendofy the cylinder being tightly closed by a head 8 which is preferably bolted or otherwise (secured firmly in position so that the I have not considered it necessary to' and said cylinder isfastened rigidly to saidl vehicle body-by suitable means,` such as'the face plate 9, the latter being adapted to rest upon the vehicle body or a part thereof and to be secured rigidly in position thereto by bolts or other fastenings.

Piston 6 is provided with a plurality of packingrings 10, said piston being similar to the pistons of ordinary interna-l combustion engines,'z`. e. .said piston is provided with a smooth. polished surface which cooperates with a similar polished sui'face on the interior of the cylinder. It is preferred to lubricate the contacting surface of the cylinder and the piston in the usual manner, i. e. by rubbing a lubricant of graphite and mica into or upon such surfaces, thereby reducing the friction between the contacting soy surfaces of the piston and the cylinder. The

thereof mayv be connected mechanically withv the running gear or axle of the vehicle. Said piston rod 7 is shown in Figs. 1 and 2 as bei-ng coiinected pivotally by a bolt 12 .to a bracket 13 attached to an axle, as B, but the particular means for operatively con'- necting the piston rod with the running gear is not a material feature of the invention, so that this part ofthe structure may be modified b a skilled constructoi\.` y

From the; oregoing description it is a, parent that the cylinders are attached to e body and the pistons .have movable con 'hcg tion with the running gear, said pistons and cylinders coperating with each other, inorder that they may haveI a limited relative piston rod is connected pivotally at 11 with "ics the cylinders under sufficientv pressure to support' the Weight of the lbody and its load. For this purpose, the air or gas is forced into the cylinders of the load carrying devices underpressure, and to this end, suitable mecha lical devices may be, and preferably are, provided on the.` cylinders for the purpose of supplying the latte wit air or gas until the desired pressurel shall havev been established therein. In Fig.k 3 the cylinder head 8 is provided with an inflating valve 1 4 and with a pressure gage 15 ofany suitable construction, whereby a hose or pipe from an inflating pump or other source of gaseouslpressiire, may be connected to iridating valve 14, for the purpose of supplying the air or gas to the cylinder, the'pressure of the inflowing air ori gas beingindicated by gage 15. v

The air or gas within'the cylinders of the load carrying 'devices is under sufficient pressure to support the weight of the body and pressure Within the cylinder, and this a load which may be imposed. thereon, but in the normal position of the istonswithin the cylinder a sufficient space 1s left between the pistons and the cylinder head fora rela* tive movement between the cylinder and the piston so as to allow thepiston to ascend or the cylinder. to descend under shocks and jars which arise from the vehicle wheels traveling over irregularities in the road sur. face or meeting with obstructions therein. A sudden movement of the piston in an upward direction tends to compress the air or gas so that under these conditionsthe pressure of said air or 'gas will exceed the normal condition inthe operation of the load carryinvr device renders it desirable to preclude leakage ofthe air or gas under the maximum pressurel to which it is subjected. Accordingly, I employ means whereby the air or gas is precluded from leakage under normal or abnormal pressures, such means being a liquid seal within the cylinder. The liquid seal ma be a free li uid contained within the cylinder and is imposed upon piston head 6 therein. The liquid may consist of water, oil, glycerin or anyother flow material, and a suitable quantity of said liquid is employedso as to produce a strata or layer between 'the air or gas chamber of thecylin der and that part of the internal surface of the cylinder with which the `piston is adapt ed to frictionally contact, whereby an 1ncrease in the pressure of the air or gas withl in the cylinderV due to a relative movement between the cylinder and the piston, forces the liquid between the contacting surfaces of the cylinder and piston, in order to render the seal more effectual in precludin the leakage ofthe air or Agas under pressure rom rthe cylinder of the load carrying mechanism.

The liquid seal when free within the cylin- -der'has, or may have, a 4tendency to splash therein, and :ssuming that oil is used as the seal, the oil has a tendency to emulsify with .the air or gas, To preclude this splashing andl to overcome emulsification, 'it is pre.- ferred to employY a particular construction of iston whlch ofV itself contains a liquid in order to produce an eiiicient and reliable sea ing medium which is subjected Ato the pressure of the ai-r or gas when abnormal pressure is established within the cylinder Sov-that the liquid will be forced into the space between the cylinderand the piston,

sealfor precluding'the leakage of air or gas. This part of theinvention is illustrated more particularly in Figs. 3 and 4, wherein' 5 -designates the cylinder, 6 the piston, and 7 the piston rod, the respective end portions of which are pivotally connected at 11 and12l to the piston andthe bracket 13 on the axle' the piston, an

packing 17, and, furthermore, the piston is provided intermediate certain of the packings with an annular groove 18. `A central chamber 19 is dprov. ded within the body of thisA chamber 19 is in communication with the annular groove 18 by a plurality of racial passages 20. Said chamber, the radial passages and the annular groove const.` tute a storage chamber for a'liquid seal indicated at 21 in 3, the liquid of said seal being' confined or contained interiorly within the piston.4 Said piston is provided, also, with a vertical pocket 22 within` which is positioned a plunger' 23, said plunger being engaged by a spring 24 which is retained in position by a keeper 25. The plunger and its spring are carriedV by the piston soas to be movable therewith, and said plunger protrudes or is exposed' throughthe top of the piston, whereby the plunger is subjected to the pressure of. air or gas conined within thecylinder. The tension of the spring upon the plunger tends to 4force the'A liquid of seal22 into the annular groove lSffig, the piston so thatundei' all conditions thefli'quid is under pressure ai d is retained between the contacting surfacesy of the piston and the er. In the vent of a sudden shock ci Jar on the runnii 1g gear due to the wheels riding over anobszruction in the road, the piston is moved up vardly, thus compressin the air or gas between the cylinder head and the piston and establishing an increase pressure above the iormal withinsaid cylins der; This sudden increase in the pressure ofthe air or gas his a tendency to displaceI the liquid from bei Ween the contacting surfaces of the'cylin ler and the piston, but

this result iis coun teracted by the pressure Y Aof the plunger upon the liquid seal, said plunger being expe sed to the pressure of the air or gas. y

'The Amain purposes of the plunger are to prevent emulsjfica tion of the liquid seal with the air d? gas and to compensate for any leakage iii' the sealing liquid. Should` the quantity of liq iid bel reduced to a small extent by reasonoE leakage from the cylin=V der, the plunger will be pressed 4drown-l wardly somewhat by the air or' gas` ressure in order to di splaee the liquid by orc-L y. ing it between the contacting surface ofV thej cylinder and pisto i.

A swaying movement ofthe vehicle body A in the direction of its length is limited' of which is to kf ep the `wheels under the car as theyjmovo forward. Tie rods 26 or arrested by `suit able devices, and invFigs;

are pivoted to the body A ,and front axle i B, whereas tie rods 27 are pivoted to rear axle. C and to vehicle body A intermediate its ends. These links may be supplemented by any usual devices, such as straps, to limit the fore and aft or longitudinal swaying movement` of the body, but as these devices' are ordinary in the art, it has not been considered necessary to describe the same in detail.

The vehicle body is subjected when turning a corner at speed to a si'deyvise swaying movement, and to arrest this sidewise movement, I prefer to employ suitable means which coperate with the chassis or axles and with said body. This part of the invention is embodied in thrust rods 28, 29,

a p'air 'of said thrust rods being employed near each end portion of the vehicle, and preferably adjacent to tv vo of the load supporting devices, see Fig. 2. The thrust rods are inclined in opposite directions, the thrustrod 28 being pivoted by bolt 30` to bbdy A. The other end of said thrust rod 28 is pivoted by bolt 33 with a cross head 32- sliding .in a guideway 31.0n axle B. The

other thrust rod 29 is pivoted by bolt 34 to the body A and by a bolt 37 to a crosshead 36 slidingin-the guideway 37 of theaxle B;

80 The cross heads of the'thrust rods in the said cross hea 4s normal position of the ve hicle body will be substantially central within the guide ways 31, 3 5, respectively,vbut`should the vehicle body swa to the right in Fig. 2, :thrust rod 28 wi l .move the cross headfl toward the right until it abuts against the end of the 'guide way, thus arrestin the further swa ing movement of the vehicle b ody, the strain or. pressure being imposed directly 'against the axle. A swaying movement in' .an opposite direction or toward the left iii Fig. 2 will. move thrust-.rod 29 and cross head 86 in. a corres ending direction and until is limited by contact 'with an end wall -ofthe guide way 35, the strain or pressure being borne bythe axle.

While I lhavefshdivii and described the 'c linders as being attached-to the body, and -tllie pistons as bein' connected with the-runnin gear, it isv evi ent that these part-s may un er some circumstances be reversed by attaching the cylinder to the running gear and the pistons to the vehicle body, but as this involves a meregreversalof the parts composing the load supporting devices, I

. have not considered it :necessary to illusskilled constructor .without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advani tages of the inventionl asdefiiied withinthe annexedA claims.

rand a running Having thus fully described the invention, what I claimA as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A load-carrying device for the body of a vehicle embodying a cylinder and a cooperating piston provided with means for operativelyconnecting the same with a body and a running ear respectively', said piston being providd with an annular groove and with an internal chamber closed at the bottom thereof, said chamber and roove being adapted to contain a sealing iquid which is displaceable from the chamber by an increase in the pressure of the gaseous medium above the initial pressure, which increased pressure is due to a relative movement between the cylinder and the piston;

2. A load-carrying device for the body of a vehicle embodying a cylinder and a cooperating piston provided with means for loperatively connecting the same with a body and a running gear respectively, said piston being provided with an annular groove and with an internal chamber for containing a sealing` liquid, and means for displacing the sealing liquid operable by .an increase in the pressure of the gaseous medium above the initial pressure established in said cylinder. i

3. A load-carrying device for the body of a vehicle embodying a cylinder and a cooperating piston provided with means for operatively connecting the same with a body and a running ar respectively, said piston .being'provi ed with an annular groove and with a closed bottom chamber or'containing a sealing li uid, means for establishin within thecy inder a gaseous shock v absorV ing medium Athe initial pressure' of which is sufficient to sustain the weight of said vehicle body and its load, and a plunger carried b y the piston for Contact with the 'sealing lliquid* vand exposed to an inf crease in the initial pressure of the gaseous medium for forcing lthe sealing liquid-between the contacting surfaces of the cylinder and the piston.

4. A load-carrying device for the body of a vehicle lembodying a cylinder and a c0- operating piston. provided with means for operatively connecting the same with 'a body anda running ear, respectively, said pistonbeing provi' ed with a chamber forcontaining a sealing liquid, `and means operable by an increase in .the initial pressure of the gaseous. medium `for forcing the sealing liquid between the contacting surfaces of the cylinder and the 'i'ston.

v5. A load-carryv g device for the body 'of a'vehicle embodying a cylinder .and -a co- 'operating piston provided with means forv operatively connecting the same with a body and 'With-a central chamber for containing y r, respectively, said pisl l ton being provi ed with an annular groove iso a. sealing liquid, a }lunger carried by the In testimony whereof I have signed my piston and operative y related to the liquid name tothis specieation'inthe presence of 10 preent inthe chzmbelr, and means for yieldl; two subscribing witnesses, y retauning t e -p unger in Contact Wit 1 5 tli sealing liquid, said plunger being oper- RALPH VI(TOR HAYES wable to displace the liquid by in increase in Witnesses: the' rassure above the pressure initially es- J. F. MOTHERSHEAD, tabllshedbetween the cylinder and piston. M. E, FREEMAN. 

